Social networking system and method

ABSTRACT

A social network is provided. The social network of the present invention may prompt a user to create a “moment”. The moment of the present invention may include at least a time and a location of a place that the user is currently located, was located in the past, or will be located in the future. The moment may be stored on a database. Multiple users may create accounts and create a plurality of moments. All of the moments of the users may be stored on the database. The present invention may include a search box so that third party users may search for other third party user&#39;s moments. A user may enter in search criteria and may be presented with a plurality of moments based on the inputted search criteria.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. provisionalapplication No. 61/715,621, filed Oct. 18, 2012 the contents of whichare herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a social networking system and methodand, more particularly, to a social networking program that networksindividuals based on time and location.

Current social networks do not protect user's identity and do notprovide a hub for connecting with people based on time and location.Additionally, users are not able to connect to other social networksusing one single social network. Current social networks are clutteredand are not dynamic enough to meet a user's personal needs. Further, themembers of the social network cannot sort through uploaded files ofother users by time, date, and location.

As can be seen, there is a need for an improved social networking sitethat allows people connect with others based on time and location posts.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a system for social networkingcomprises: a computer having a user interface; and a program productcomprising a machine-readable program code for causing, when executed,the computer to perform the following process steps: prompting a user tocreate a user account; prompting the user to input personal information;storing the personal information on a database; prompting the user tocreate a moment, wherein the moment comprises information comprising atleast a time and a location of a place that the user is currentlylocated, was located in the past, or will be located in the future;storing the moment on the database, wherein a plurality of momentssubmitted from third party users are saved; receiving an entered searchcriteria to request viewing at least one moment within the database; anddisplaying the at least one moment based on the inputted searchcriteria.

In another aspect of the present invention, a system for socialnetworking comprises: a computer having a user interface; and a programproduct comprising a machine-readable program code for causing, whenexecuted, the computer to perform the following process steps: promptinga user to create a user account; prompting the user to input personalinformation; storing the personal information on a database; uploading atime and a location of the user to the database, wherein the databasecomprises the time and location of third party users; searching forthird party users having a similar time and location as the uploadedtime and location of the user; and giving the user the ability toconnect/socialize with the third party users that have a similar timeand location to the user. Additionally users have the ability to createmoments a place them in the public domain in the map tab for all usersto view them.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplatedmodes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. Thedescription is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merelyfor the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention,since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

The present invention may include a Social Ecosystem that allows usersto communicate in anonymity, and store and publish personal locationbased data. In certain embodiments, the user may create a handle andsubmit an avatar picture in order to connect with other network usersthat a user does not know. The users may invite and connect with otherusers that uploaded information corresponding to a same time, place, anddate. In certain embodiments, the user may be able to connect to othersocial networks. In certain embodiments, the website may include alayout comprising digital notepads and interchangeable tabs that mayallow the user to separate different aspects of their life. A networkuser may be able to view other network user's uploads by location, typeof activity, date range, time range and a unique user.

The present invention may include a social network that may store theuser's location, date, and time data. The data stored may be used toconnect users to other users who shared the same or very similarlocation, date, and time period (to be specified by the network). Thepresent invention may further provide users with an outlet to organizedata that third party network users have uploaded in a public folder andgives third party users the ability to view the uploaded information byuser, date range, time range, and location.

The present invention may include at least one computer with a userinterface. The computer may include any computer including, but notlimited to, a desktop, laptop, and smart device, such as, a tablet andsmart phone. The computer includes a program product including amachine-readable program code for causing, when executed, the computerto perform steps. The program product may include software which mayeither be loaded onto the computer or accessed by the computer. Theloaded software may include an application on a smart device. Thesoftware may be accessed by the computer using a web browser. Thecomputer may access the software via the web browser using the internet,extranet, intranet, host server, internet cloud and the like.

Referring to the FIGS. 1 through 3, the present invention may include aplurality of users 10 within the same location using computers 12, suchas smart devices, to create an account and login. The computers 12 mayeither connect to a wireless network 18 via a wireless tower 16 or mayconnect to the internet 22 using a hard-line or a Wi-Fi hot spot 20.Both of the wireless network 18 and the internet 22 may access adatabase 24 in which the information uploaded from the computer 12 maybe stored.

Using the computer 12 connected to the database 24, the user may createthe user account on the social networking website. In certainembodiments, the user may then input information. The information mayinclude personal information such as a name, an age, a sex, a pluralityof physical traits, and a plurality of personal interests. The user mayalso upload a picture and/or an avatar that represents and is displayedas their profile. The account and the personal information may be storedon the database 24. The location and time data of the user may betransferred to the database 24 and shared with other users 10 within thesame location. The location and time data may not be shared with otherusers 28 that are not within the same time frame or not within the samelocation.

The social network of the present invention may prompt a user to createa “moment”. The moment of the present invention may include at least atime and a location of a place that the user is currently located, waslocated in the past, or will be located in the future. The moment may bestored on the database 24. Multiple users 10 may create accounts andcreate a plurality of moments. All of the moments of the users 10 may bestored on the database. In certain embodiments, the present inventionmay include a search box so that third party users may search for otherthird party user's moments. A user may enter in search criteria and maybe presented with a plurality of moments based on the inputted searchcriteria.

As mentioned above, the moments of the present invention may include atleast a time and a location that the user has inputted. In certainembodiments, users may attach data to the moments. The data may include,but is not limited to, uploaded video, pictures, and text. For example,if a user creates a moment based on a place that the user is going, theuser may take pictures at the particular place and upload the picture tothe moment.

The website or application of the present invention may be setup usingdifferent tabs and screens. For example, the present invention mayinclude a home screen. The home screen may display all of the updatedinformation that has been inputted by the user. In certain embodiments,the home screen may include a notepad that displays all of the user'spersonal moments previously submitted. The moments may be listed inchronological order. In certain embodiments the moments may includeicons indicating if there is text, video, or pictures attached to themoment. In certain embodiments, the home screen may further include amap with icons representing moments in the notepad. Therefore, themoments may be placed on the map based on the location of the moment.The home page may also include the search box to search for third partyuser moments.

In certain embodiments, the home page may provide the user with an iconto create a moment, such as a time capsule. When selected, the user mayenter in the month day and year, or simply select now, representing thetime of creation. The use may either point on a map or enter in anaddress. In certain embodiments, the computer may include globalpositioning system capabilities, in which the computer may automaticallylocate the where the user is at that point. The user may also be giventhe option to upload data such as video, pictures or text. Once themoment has been created, a user may determine whether they would like toshare the moment with the public or share the moment privately. Forexample, the user may pick between friends, family, acquaintances andthe like. The present invention may further include a blog option. Theuser may select blog from a particular moment. A search may beautomatically performed based on the particular moment's time andlocation. The present invention may then allow users to text third partuser's that created moments with similar times and locations. Therefore,if a user lost an object at a sports game, the user may either create anew moment or select a moment already created that included the locationand the time of the sports game. The user may then begin chatting withusers that have moments that include the same sports game with the sametime and location.

In certain embodiments, the present invention may further include ashare tab. The share tab may provide a notepad of moments that otherthird part users have shared with the user. Therefore, a user may lookat the shared moments to see where their friends are and what they aredoing. The moments may be listed chronologically. Further, the user mayselect a certain day and time to see what users have done in the past orwhat users will be doing. The present invention may further allow usersto comment of third party moments, which may be saved to the moment. Incertain embodiments, the shared moments may also be displayed on a map.

In certain embodiments, the present invention may further include apublic tab. The public tab may include a window that allows users toview shared public moments of third parties. The public tab may furtherinclude a map displaying the locations of third party users that havecreated moments. The user is able to upload data through the wirelessdevice application to the public folder for all users to see. The publicdata can be sorted by user, location, date, and time ranges.Additionally, the data can be sorted by data type. A symbol/pointdepicting a public moment on the map coincides with a moment listed intabular format adjacent to the map. Advertisements may be shown as popups on the map that are based on the user's current location. If theuser is viewing a map location that is near the user's location thenlocal/national advertisement may be displayed. Otherwise, nationaladvertisement may be displayed alone.

The present invention may further include a tool to meet other peoplewithout disclosing the user's identity. For example, the user mayidentify the moment in time, date, and location (latitude and longitudeor place specified by user) by time stamping the moment using thewireless device application or website. The application/website may thenupload that information on to the database and tag information to theuser's profile. If the user would like to connect with other users thathave shared the same location, date, and similar time period, the usermay log into present invention to connect to the network and input theinformation creating a moment that the user wants to socialize in. Asearch may be performed within the database to match up other users thatshared the location and time period criteria and notify the users thatthere is an anonymous user that wants to connect with them. Suchembodiments may be used for past moments, present moments, or futuremoments. The present invention may also notify the user of other sharedmoments created by third party users that include the same or similartime, date, and location.

By capturing location, date, and time period and uploading to thenetwork along with other information (i.e. pictures, video, etc.) via anapplication in the user's wireless device, the user begins the processof social networking by date, time, and location. The information may beuploaded in real time or at a later time based on the user's discretion.The data may be stored in the database to be used at a future time forconnecting with other users based on their past/future moments. When theuser chooses to socialize with other users who share the specifiedlocation, date, and time period, the user may log onto the socialnetwork. Once logged in to the network, there may be a window where theuser may input the search criteria and the application may run analgorithm that matches all three criteria with a variation in the timewindow that will be set by the network or set by the user and thenetwork will connect you with the users that match the criteria. Thismay be done with complete discretion.

The present invention may include many features that are dependent onthe data being uploaded. A user can use the share tab feature to sharemoments and the time capsule feature can be used to upload past orfuture experiences not captured by a wireless device. There may also bea button feature that allows the user to socialize with other socialnetworks. The share tab may allow the user to view other user's momentsby location, date, and time and allows you to comment on that sharedmoment. Comments may be disabled by the user that is sharing the moment.In the public tab, a user may view what any user has uploaded and cansearch by location, handle, time, and date. The public tab may beindependent of other tabs. Once you choose to upload to the public tab,the moment may be automatically updated to the home tab, such as thenotepad. The blog tab may be a button feature usable at the home tab andis used to manage your created or received blogs.

The computer-based data processing system and method described above isfor purposes of example only, and may be implemented in any type ofcomputer system or programming or processing environment, or in acomputer program, alone or in conjunction with hardware. The presentinvention may also be implemented in software stored on acomputer-readable medium and executed as a computer program on a generalpurpose or special purpose computer. For clarity, only those aspects ofthe system germane to the invention are described, and product detailswell known in the art are omitted. For the same reason, the computerhardware is not described in further detail. It should thus beunderstood that the invention is not limited to any specific computerlanguage, program, or computer. It is further contemplated that thepresent invention may be run on a stand-alone computer system, or may berun from a server computer system that can be accessed by a plurality ofclient computer systems interconnected over an intranet network, or thatis accessible to clients over the Internet. In addition, manyembodiments of the present invention have application to a wide range ofindustries. To the extent the present application discloses a system,the method implemented by that system, as well as software stored on acomputer-readable medium and executed as a computer program to performthe method on a general purpose or special purpose computer, are withinthe scope of the present invention. Further, to the extent the presentapplication discloses a method, a system of apparatuses configured toimplement the method are within the scope of the present invention.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates toexemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

1. A system for sharing digital contents on a social networkingplatform, the system comprising: a network configured to connect aplurality of computers, the network configured to provide at least oneof the plurality computers with an executable program; wherein at leastone of the plurality computers has a user interface; wherein theexecutable program comprising machine-readable code which, after beingprovided to the at least one of the plurality computers and whenexecuted, causes the at least one of the plurality computers to: prompta user on the user interface to create at least one picture or video,wherein the at least one picture or the video comprises location datacomprising a location of a place that the at least one picture or videowas created, wherein the location data is uploaded to a database of thenetwork and tagged to a profile of the user; search for additionalpictures or videos that have similar location data as the at least onepicture or video; share, without disclosing the user's proper name,activities done by the user on a particular day by chronologicallylisting a plurality of digital contents of the user; receive an enteredsearch criteria on the user interface by the user to request viewing atleast one picture or video created by third party users within thedatabase; display the at least one picture or video of the third partyusers on a screen based on the entered search criteria.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the location data includes a location of the user. 3.The system of claim 1, wherein the location data includes a past orfuture location of the user.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein thelocation data includes GPS or address coordinates of a current locationof the user or a location or address input by the user.
 5. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the executable program is configured to cause the atleast one of the plurality computers to prompt the user to designate theat least one picture or video as public or private.
 6. A method executedby a computer for sharing digital contents on a social networkingplatform, the method comprising: prompting a user on a user interface ofthe computer to create at least one picture or video, wherein the atleast one picture or the video comprises location data comprising alocation of a place that the at least one picture or video was created,wherein the location data is uploaded to a database and tagged to aprofile of the user; searching for additional pictures or videos thathave similar location data as the at least one picture or video;sharing, without disclosing the user's proper name, activities done bythe user on a particular day by chronologically listing a plurality ofdigital contents of the user; receiving an entered search criteria onthe user interface by the user to request viewing at least one pictureor video created by third party users within the database; displayingthe at least one picture or video of the third party users on a screenbased on the entered search criteria.
 7. The method of claim 6, whereinthe location data includes a location of the user.
 8. The method ofclaim 6, wherein the location data includes a past or future location ofthe user.
 9. The method of claim 6, wherein the location data includesGPS or address coordinates of a current location of the user or alocation or address input by the user.
 10. The method of claim 6,further comprising: prompting the user to designate the at least onepicture or video as public or private.
 11. A non-transitory recordingmedium storing an executable program which, when executed, causes acomputer to implement a method for sharing digital contents on a socialnetworking platform, the method comprising: prompting a user on a userinterface of the computer to create at least one picture or video,wherein the at least one picture or the video comprises location datacomprising a location of a place that the at least one picture or videowas created, wherein the location data is uploaded to a database andtagged to a profile of the user; searching for additional pictures orvideos that have similar location data as the at least one picture orvideo; sharing, without disclosing the user's proper name, activitiesdone by the user on a particular day by chronologically listing aplurality of digital contents of the user; receiving an entered searchcriteria on the user interface by the user to request viewing at leastone picture or video created by third party users within the database;displaying the at least one picture or video of the third party users ona screen based on the entered search criteria.
 12. The method of claim11, wherein the location data includes a location of the user.
 13. Themethod of claim 11, wherein the location data includes a past or futurelocation of the user.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the locationdata includes GPS or address coordinates of a current location of theuser or a location or address input by the user.
 15. The method of claim11, further comprising: prompting the user to designate the at least onepicture or video as public or private.